With Marci still snagged up close, Lucius turned and found Bethany standing there, Hero at her side. She looked sleepy and rumpled and...devastated. But only for a second or two.

Then she looked enraged.

Five.

Bethany wanted to shout from the hurt exploding inside her. Seeing Lucius wrapped around her sister destroyed her composure, but pride kept her tone calm and icily polite.

She found a smirking, sarcastic smile. "Come on, Hero. It looks like we've interrupted...something."

With that parting shot, she walked off. She started to go back into Lucius's apartment, but hey, it was his apartment, which meant he'd surely just walk in behind her. In mid-step, she switched course and headed for the front door. With his dog. Which only served him right.

Where she'd go, she had no idea, but she sure as heck didn't intend to stay. She didn't blame her sister; Marci couldn't help it that men preferred her. And Marci didn't know how Bethany felt about him; she hadn't even admitted it to herself until that day. He was a great catch. No woman could resist him.

The b.a.s.t.a.r.d.

Marci and Lucius both came into the hall at the same time. They were both fast explaining. She turned to her sister. "It's all right, Marci," she said, all magnanimous and forgiving. A saint, even. She didn't look at Lucius. "I understand."

"The h.e.l.l you do," Lucius shouted.

Upstairs, Devine's door opened, and a second later, so did Tyra's. "What's going on?" Devine yelled down.

"Bethany's being an a.s.s," Lucius replied.

That stopped Bethany in her tracks. She pivoted around and stomped back to him. Hero trotted along beside her.

When she reached him, she opened her mouth to blast him with invective-and he squashed her up tight against his chest and planted a hard, wet one on her.

Naturally, she resisted...for about three seconds. Then her knees went weak.

"There you go," Marci said with satisfaction. And while Lucius continued to rape her mouth in a most delicious and convincing way, in front of G.o.d and tenants alike, Marci added, "He has no interest in me, Bethany. Trust me on this. I wouldn't lie to you. He's a good man, so I hope you don't blow it."

Lucius lifted away a scant millimeter. "I want you. Not her. Not anyone else." He kissed her again before she could think of anything to say to that.

Amanda stepped into the hall. "Oh my. Well, why didn't anyone tell me this was happening?"

Only Esther slept on, but then, it was well known that very little could rouse Esther out of her bed.

"Come to my place," Lucius whispered against her lips. "I've missed you, and we have unfinished business to see to."

Little sparks ignited deep in her belly. "You're not interested in Marci?"

His forehead touched hers and he smiled. "How could I be, when there's you?"

"Oh." That sounded pretty sincere.

Hands cupping her face, he held her gaze. "My only interest in Marci is that she's your sister, so a part of your life. She's important to you, so that makes her important to me. But other than a brotherly peck or friendly hug, I have no desire to touch her. Ever."

Now that she thought about it, what she'd seen had been rather perfunctory. Sort of a friendly snuggle, not a heated embrace. "I see." She was starting to feel a little foolish for overreacting.

"You, on the other hand, are impossible to resist."

Her heart soared. "Okay."

In the next instant, he had her hustling along and she said, "Wait."

Vibrating with frustration and s.e.xual energy, he halted. "What?"

"Hero..."

"Is coming with us. He's mine, too, and I haven't spent enough time with him."

He's mine, too.Some indefinable emotion expanded within Bethany, making her heart feel full, her limbs weak. Her lips curled into a vague smile. "He needs to make a trip outside first. That's what I was doing when I walked in on you two."

Lucius smiled back at her. "We'll walk him out together." He looked around at their audience, then dismissed them all with a friendly, "Good night."

Women of varying ages grinned. "Good night, Luscious," they said in near unison, making Bethany laugh.

Arm in arm, they stepped out front. Lucius held Hero's leash while the dog sniffed several bushes, a telephone pole, and a scraggly patch of gra.s.s until he found just the right spot.

"It's a beautiful night," Bethany said, staring up at the stars.

"It's hot and humid and perfect," Lucius agreed. He kissed her forehead, the bridge of her nose, and she could feel his antic.i.p.ation, which made her feel it, too. When the dog came over and sat on his foot, Lucius patted his neck. "What more could a man want?"

Feeling wicked, Bethany said, "Well, I don't know about man, but a woman could want a continuance of that little business from the afternoon."

"Little business?"

She grinned, knowing she'd never been so happy before. "Incomplete business? Is that better?"

"Not really." He grew serious, tipping up her chin and kissing her gently. "I'll make it perfect. I promise."

G.o.d, she loved him. "It already is."

That seemed to set him off, and once again, he hustled her along. Once inside, he left her standing there while he locked the doors and fetched a fluffy blanket for Hero, which he spread out on the couch.

The dog stretched, looked at them both, then bounded up to circle the bedding before dropping with a l.u.s.ty sigh.

"He's a good dog, isn't he?" Lucius remarked, giving Hero a few strokes along his back.

"He's a wonderful dog. Very easy and well-mannered and gentle."

That made Lucius smile. He sat at the edge of the couch by the dog's feet and continued to stroke him. "He wasn't gentle when he attacked Steve Seeder. Somehow, he knew things weren't right. He knew Steve's mother was in danger and he took care of it." Lucius glanced up at Bethany. "It still amazes me. He went from being timid to ferocious, then back to timid. He would have just crept away if I hadn't stopped him, like he figured his job was done and no one needed him anymore."

Bethany wondered at his patience now, when moments before he'd been so anxious. "Animals have some psychic powers-did you know that?"

He grinned, looking so handsome that she felt like dragging him off to the bedroom right then. "Like your sister, you mean?"

Bethany shrugged. "I'm not quite sure how they do it, but it's been proven that animals respond to us, just as we respond to them. They sense things. You've made Hero feel welcome, so he's relaxed a lot. He still gets jumpy at times, whenever he's uncertain, but that'll fade with time."

Sitting at the head of the couch, she, too, stroked the dog. "It's been proven that animals help people with high blood pressure to lower their systolic and diastolic levels. They bring a calming effect. Cardiac patients usually live longer when they own pets, the elderly stay less depressed, handicapped children, and children of abuse, will respond to animals when humans can't reach them."

He seemed fascinated. Using that low, melodic voice that never failed to give her shivers, he whispered, "Makes you wonder how anyone could ever mistreat them, doesn't it?"

Half asleep, Hero nuzzled his nose into Bethany's hand, telling her how much he enjoyed the attention. "It destroys Marci when she knows an animal has been mistreated. She's helped so many, but it's never enough."

"It leaves her vulnerable, doesn't it?"

His insight didn't surprise her; Lucius was a very astute man. "I remember the most recent incident. A woman was about to marry a man without knowing that he was mean and nasty to her dog when she wasn't around. The dog, poor thing, was losing weight and sort of...fading away."

"He felt betrayed."

"Yes." She bent to hug Hero, wishing all dogs could find a good home. "Marci picked up on it, and she contacted the woman."

"I hoped she kicked the sorry son of a b.i.t.c.h to the curb."

"She did. From the very beginning, she believed Marci. Especially when the dog, a mid-sized mutt, took to her. She called Marci the very next day, saying she'd confronted the guy, and although he denied it, she could see her dog was terrified of him. The wedding was called off, and now the dog is doing great."

Lucius pushed to his feet and reached for Bethany's hand. "Both you and your sister are pretty remarkable, you know that?"

"I know Marci is." She allowed him to pull her up and into his arms. "But I'm just me." As a child, she'd been almost jealous of Marci's abilities because, even though much of the attention was negative, it was still a lot more than she received. She'd outgrown that, and accepted her mediocrity.

"I think you're the most amazing, caring, loyal, and gentle woman I know."

"Marci is-"

"A very nice person with an awesome talent, but she doesn't have your gumption and fire." He started for the bedroom, towing her along. "Like you said, it's an att.i.tude thing."

"Are you going to keep teasing me about that?"

He tugged her past the bedroom door, then closed it and caged her there, angling his body in so that his arms framed her shoulders and his hips nestled against hers. "When you're right, you're right. I love your att.i.tude."

Love. Hearing that particular word nearly sent her heart through her rib cage. "Show me."

"Yes, ma'am. Now where were we? No-wait. I remember. We were right about-" His hand slid past the waistband of her shorts, then inside her shorts and inside her panties. Very softly, he whispered, "Here."

Head back against the door, Bethany breathed, "Yeah, that seems about right."

Lucius kissed her, and then kept on kissing her while he worked her T-shirt up to her chin. He lifted his head and stared down at her b.r.e.a.s.t.s. "d.a.m.n."

Bethany held her breath, but let it out in a groan when he bent to her, closed his mouth around one nipple, and suckled softly. She waited for him to move on to the next step, to take her to the bed, but he didn't. He seemed content to keep her pinned against the door while he drove her a little crazy with l.u.s.t.

"Lucius..."

He switched to her other breast, circling her nipple with his tongue, gently closing his teeth over the very tip, tugging.

"Oh G.o.d."

One long finger pushed inside her. Bethany couldn't keep still. She felt her hips moving, grinding against his hand, blindly seeking the pleasure. He brought his thumb into play, lifted his eyes to watch her face, and she came with a wrenching moan, her eyes squeezed shut, her teeth clenched, her fingers gripping tight onto his shoulders.

It seemed an eternity before she collected herself and realized that his hands were now repositioned, one on her bottom to support her, another on her breast. She got her eyes open, and when she did, it was to see Lucius eyeing her with a slight smile.

She flushed.

His grin widened. "You're beautiful."

"I'm a little embarra.s.sed. That is, I've never...well, climaxed like that."

"S'that right? Well, honey, plan on being real embarra.s.sed tonight, okay?" He lifted her and moved her to the bed, laying her crosswise over the mattress, so that her legs hung over the side. He came down beside her instead of atop her. "Now, let's get these clothes off you."

"Okay." She lifted her hips and pushed her shorts and panties down to her knees. Lucius skimmed them the rest of the way off, then tossed them onto a chair in his room. He whisked her T-shirt up and over her head. With the fingers of one hand spread wide, he stroked her from her shoulders to her hip and everywhere in between.

Shyly, a little uncertain, Bethany told him, "I'm ready."

"I'm not."

She raised herself up and stared down at the erection pressing hard against his jeans. "Yes, you are."

"Not yet."

Understanding, she said, "You don't have to do this."

One brow lifted. Rather than look at her face, he caught her knee and opened her legs a little. "This?"

"Pay so much attention to me."

The side of his mouth quirked. "I love looking at you and touching you."

"But..." She regretted her earlier jibes against men and lovemaking because now he felt obliged to spend extra time on her. "I know you want to...well, you know."

"f.u.c.k you? Get inside you? Get my rocks off?" Finally, he looked at her face, but only for a brief glimpse. "Yeah, I do. And I will. But let me enjoy myself first, okay? I've been thinking about this for a really long time."

"You aren't...anxious?" Every guy she'd ever known had been anxious. A kiss, a fondle, and they were ready to get it over with.

As if he'd known her thoughts, he said, "Don't compare me to other men, babe, okay?" While saying that, he pushed up and off the bed. Reaching back, he caught a fistful of his shirt and jerked it over his head. Next, he removed his phone and pager and placed them on the dresser behind him, then shucked off his jeans and underwear.

Bethany stared. "Wow."

He stood there, giving her a chance to look while he parted her knees farther. His chest expanded on deep breaths. "Trust me, I'm anxious."

Her voice almost deserted her. "Then..."